Crowgrrrl's Perch 10-03-04

CROWGRRL’S PERCH 10-10-04

By Athena Schaffer aka The Crowgrrl

MUSIC:

* KMFDM is currently celebrating the band’s 20^th anniversary by appearing at 42 shows in 45 days. The current wave of touring is also fresh on the heels of the release of their "WWIII" dvd
and live cd.

The current touring incarnation of KMFDM is, of course, Sascha K., joined by Lucia Cifarelli, Jules Hodgson, Andy Selway, and Steve White.

The Crowgrrl caught up with Sascha on September 22, just as the band was taking a quick breather before beginning the Canadian and US tours.

Is your current tour in support of "WWIII"?

Yes, and it’s also the 20th Anniversary of KMFDM.

Very cool. Congratulations! Any new products coming out soon?

Yeah, we’re actually releasing the old 84 to 86 tracks which are like funny little ditties from the rehearsal room and stuff like that. That comes out as a double cd in about 2 weeks. Other than that, we had just recently released the "WWIII Live" dvd and the soundtrack to it. That is what we think of as our current album.

I noticed there weren’t any songs from "Attak" on "WWIII". Why not? "Attak" is a great album.

You know what? You’re right, because we had the "Sturm & Drang" dvd as well, so why re-do all of the "Attak" songs twice on dvd?! But on the WWIII tour, we did play a bunch of songs from "Attak" like "Attak/Reload" and "Sturm & Drang".

Is "84-86" going to be an enhanced cd?

No, it’s just a double cd for $20 on our 20th Anniversary Tour.

I heard that your Russian tour was sold out. What was it like touring Russia?

It was really only two shows. There are not that many markets you can play in Russia. We played Moscow and St. Petersburg, and both times it was absolutely insane. Really, really good! We had two and a half times the capacity of the venue each night. People were very eager and energetic. It was great!

Are the commemorative Russian tour t-shirts only available at your website, or will they be at the merch stands at the shows?

No, those are limited edition Russian shirts; we just don’t have those quantities to bring them out on the road.

So, what kind of merch are you bringing?

We have the usual tour shirts with the 20th Anniversary art; we have a baby-doll t-shirt, a work shirt; a bunch of baseball hats - people always want to wear baseball hats for some reason, I don’t know why. But they want them. And we have little themed merchandise types of things.

Tell me about your "Kapt’n’s Korner" on your website.

The "Kapt’n’s Korner" is a thing where I just asked my webmaster to make me this little thing in order for me to vent and shit, and let go without having to always ask and wait for him to put it up. The site has gone a bit out of my control the last couple of months because I don’t have time to take care of all of that stuff all the time. We’ve been touring our butts off.

In fact, I just got back from Europe where I was on tour. Lucia was opening for Robin Gibb. Now I’ve got two weeks left to nail everything down for the KMFDM US dates.

What’s your live show like on this tour?

Just the usual. High-energy, not too many frills just because the frills don’t cut it. In the past we’ve done everything from carrying our own productions like videos and crap. But that stuff just doesn’t make that much of a difference. It just gets really cumbersome, time-intensive, costly. We’re doing this 20th Anniversary tour in more of a punk rock style.

Are you going to be including any songs from "Attak"?

Yeah, definitely!

It’s going to be not exactly a retrospective of 20 years, but we have added a lot of older songs to the set list - a couple of favorites that we haven’t played for 10 to 15 years, so it should be a good program.

What about your stage outfits?

That is actually a really good question because I think that’s on everyone’s mind - what to wear on this tour. Perhaps not so much for Andy, our drummer, or the two guitarists, but Lucia had a latex outfit last year which was pretty impressive. I’m not sure what she’s going to bring.

But I think I’m push the "Kapt’n’s" angle a bit I just had this glorious captain’s cap made in my hometown of Hamburg, the home of sailing as we know it. So I’m going to wear that and see if it works or if it doesn’t.

Very cool! Are you writing any new material?

We are just starting to think about when we will begin writing. It looks like in the following two weeks we won’t have time to do much other than get ready. But when we get back -- it looks like we might go to Russia again in December, then Australia, perhaps. So, in early January, we will sit down and begin recording.

Are you releasing any singles or videos from "WWIII"?

No. Basically, we have just parted ways with our label, Sanctuary. Once again we’re on our own. Between touring and all that kind of stuff, sometimes there’s just no time up with new products. I’m quite happy with all the releases that we’ve had this year came out okay. I’m just looking forward to the release of the "84-86" double album

But we do need to kick back at some point and create new stuff, that’s for sure!

So, is Sanctuary releasing the "84-86" album?

No! That’s on KMFDM Records.

Are you in talks with other labels yet, or are you going to do that when it’s time to record?

The question really is - do we even need a label anymore?! That’s a question that we’re going to ask ourselves for the next two months, and then come to a decision. I can see us doing it on KMFDM Records if we for some reason are being left with a little bit of cash after this tour. If not, I guess the only label that I would actually consider is probably Metropolis. They have some great guys who are very straight up with no hidden agendas.

With KMFDM Records, are you just doing your own stuff or are you going to put other bands on there?

Well, it’s not quite clear. We only have two releases on it so far. The first one was "Opium", the second is the "84-86". Right now it’s basically an outlet for retrospective KMFDM stuff. But I could definitely envision -- if the right project came our way - that we’d put it out on KMFDM Records. We just have to really figure out how it all works.

We just had a very prestigious project lined up, but that fell through in Spring of this year: an album with Raymond Watts. But somehow he had some strange business advice and last minute cancellations.

The Big Bang for KMFDM Records would be to come out with a good project or product. That never really happened. We’ll see. It’s all the mechanics of financing. How long can we sustain ourselves while we’re in the studio without income from other activities?!

Do you have a distribution deal for KMFDM Records?

We’re working on that as well. It shouldn’t be too hard as time goes on, and projects are being realized and tackled.

I know that you have done a lot of side projects from time to time. Have you done any lately?

Yes! I’ve done the music for the Spiderman 2 videogame. I have done a project called Charlie Brown, which is a female-fronted hard rock band from the Seattle area. I just finished that up a couple of months ago. I think that’s it. My mind is a bit blurred when it comes to the last 12 months because of the pretty huge KMFDM tour, then the Spiderman 2 stuff, then the Charlie Brown stuff, then another pretty good tour in Europe and Russia, then on the West Coast. Now, in October we tour again. We never rest.

So, which do you prefer, studio or touring?

One doesn’t work without the other. After 6 to 9 months in the studio, we’re like, "F**k! Let’s get on the bus! Do some live shows!" Then after a couple of months of touring, we’re like, "God, I wish I could sit in the studio and have my own schedule - not wait for everyone, and have clean laundry." I think that’s the polarity that keeps it exciting and energizing for me

What have I not asked that you want to tell Perch readers?

I don’t know if you’ve had a chance to look at the "WWIII" dvd - that thing is chock full of videos and stuff. It’s basically everything that we did in the last year and a half, and some older stuff. There are 3 or 4 videos on there. One of the things you should watch first perhaps is the "Skurk" video from "Attak"; that’s very cool. Then there’s a very nice video for the song "Ultra". One of the songs, "Stars & Stripes", was entered into the Independent Music Video Festival in Vancouver, BC.

It’s not like we’ve been idle. We’ve just sort-of really compressed a lot of stuff into this release in order not to have to put out a three or four dvd set. On that "WWIII" dvd, you get a huge bang for your buck.

* Jon Mikl Thor is currently working on TWO upcoming movies: starring in his own The Intercessor, as well as another with the working title, Murder At The Presidio (with Lou Diamond Phillips), which is being filmed in Victoria, BC, and is directed by John Fasano. The movie will also feature the song "Glimmer" from the upcoming THOR album, "Thor Against The World".

A new THOR video - also directed by John Fasano, was also recently filmed from the upcoming album. The Crowgrrl can’t wait to see it!

(Hey, Readers, check out the new t-shirt designs at www.thorcentral.com, too!)

* Fear Factory and Lamb Of God are getting ready to embark on a co-headlining tour, with Children of Bodom and Throwdown opening. That promises to be one kick-ass show!!!

Tour dates include:

* A third installment of the MTV2 Headbanger’s Ball Tour is getting ready to launch, with headliners Cradle of Filth! CoF will be joined by Arch Enemy , Bleeding Through, and Himsa. The "official launch" will be with a Special Tour Edition of Headbanger’s Ball on November 6. Tour dates include:

* Speaking of Cradle of Filth, their new album, "Nymphamphetamine" has found its way into the Crowgrrl’s cd player. Review’s coming soon.

* The Blazed (featuring frontman Jesse Blaze) website has been changed: it’s now at www.blazedrocks.com. Blazed will soon be releasing new 6-song demo! Check out the Blazed website for more info and schedule of live shows.

Check out Jesse’s radio show on 107.1 The Box in Long Island, New York. Those of you in the Eastern Long Island (and even parts of Connecticut ) area, be sure to tune in! (This station will be up on the web soon, too, so those of us not in that area can listen in, too). His show is in the 6pm to 11pm slot.

Blazed online chats have been rescheduled: the first Sunday of every month at 8pm EST. at http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/JesseBlaze/chat Check the Blazed websites for updates.

* The Metal Movement Tour is still underway, featuring Kittie, Crisis, and Otep.

* Satyricon are getting ready to tour the U.S., with special guest drummer Joey Jordison from Slipknot. (For some strange reason, US heightened homeland security is making it difficult for Satyricon drummer, Frost, to tour with his band).

Frontman Satyr said, "I’m just very glad that we have a new tour lined up. I think all of our fans stateside will agree that Satyricon deserve a better chance to establish the band and our style of music we believe in, more so than we’ve had so far. I think our music, our effort, and all the people who believe in Satyricon in the U.S. want us to succeed, and Joey Jordison is a good example of that. I never had to convince him that touring with Satyricon would be ‘cool’. It was rather a question of overcoming the practical obstacles with Joey being a key member of a very successful band. His enthusiasm and skill is exactly what Satyricon needs to raise the spirit of the camp. I have looked for drummers over here, and most of them are afraid they can’t match Frost’s level of drumming so they pull out before we even get started with them. Joey and I have spent a lot of time making sure he is well prepared; and it is nice to be able to fulfill the wishes of all the fans I talked to on the Morbid Angel tour who wanted to see us play in America. Satyricon is coming back!"

* Godsmack’s new dvd, "Changes" debuted at #7 on the Billboard Music Video Charts. It was filmed throughout Godsmack’s 2003-2004 "Faceless" tour, and includes a head -to-head drum solo battle between frontman Sully Erna and drummer Shannon Larkin.

Godsmack are still on tour opening for Metallica, interspersed with some acoustic solo gigs.

* According to VideoETA, Tristania’s "Widow’s Tour" (originally released in 2000) is being re-released this Tuesday, October 12, but The Crowgrrl can’t find any news about this elsewhere. If this is true, this is from Tristania’s early days when Morten Veland was with the band. (Veland is now with Sirenia . The Crowgrrl is still trying to verify this news - I’ll keep everyone posted.

SCREENS (Large & Small):

* TNT’s "Salem’s Lot" miniseries starring Rob Lowe is coming out on DVD this Tuesday, October 12.

* The Crowgrrl has just added Ginger Snaps 3: Ginger Snaps Back, Bubba Ho-Tep, and the new version of Walking Tall starring The Rock to the video library, but I haven’t had a free moment to watch any of them yet. Reviews are coming soon.

* Hellraiser fans! Doug Bradley - Pinhead himself - will be making live appearances in the UK and the USA. Check his website for details and new dates that will be added.

Hey, Pennsylvania Readers! The Colonial Theatre in Phoenixville - where the movie theater sequence in the original The Blob movie was filmed - is hosting "Monster Month" throughout October, mainly with big screen showings of old Universal classics like The Wolf Man, The Invisible Man, The Mummy (the Boris Karloff version), Dracula, and a special Halloween double feature of Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein []!

or get the whole gang.

Also on Halloween night, there will be a special Silent Film event featuring The Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari with original score by The Devil Music Ensemble.

PRINT:

* Chapter One of my own book, Under Her Black Wings (yes, the title is with Glenn Danzig’s permission - I never would have used that title otherwise) is available to all my readers in the "Print" section of this site.

From the moment this project started (brainstorming article ideas with a magazine editor; she asked if I could get an entire article out of the topic of Crow and Raven legends, and I quipped "I could write a BOOK on it!), it has taken on a life of its own, taken flight. So many people have gotten involved, and these beautiful birds mean a lot to many people!

The chapter list (the actual titles of the chapters may be renamed, but the subject matter’s the same) includes:

here

All chapters are in progress, and as I research and as people share their stories, they’re included in the appropriate chapter. These should be available soon (to those with a subscription only) to watch the work in progress.

* Gothic Beauty Issue #14 is out, and it’s AWESOME!

Gothic Beauty Magazine has revamped its website, and it’s fantastic! Go to www.gothicbeauty.com and check it out.

Anyone in the UK interested in being part of Gothic Beauty’s new UK Street Team should email street@gothicbeauty.com with your brief details and mailing address!

Ad space is available for future Gothic Beauty issues. For specifics, go to www.gothicbeauty.com/ads and "be sure to mention that Athena sent you."

* David "Avocado" Wolfe, author and foremost authority on raw food nutrition, will be making a number of live appearances, both with seminars, and performing with his band, The Healing Waters Band. For more information on any of these appearances, check his website under "Events".

Oct. 15, 2004 - Toronto, Canada
Oct. 16, 2004 - San Diego, CA
Dec. 28, 2004 through Jan. 4, 2005 - Maui, Hawaii; New Year's Raw Food Retreat

For those of us not in the San Diego area, the Nature's First Law World Headquarters has an online superstore at Nature's First Law www.rawfood.com where many of the items mentioned in David Wolfe’s books can be found. You can also sign up there for a great e-newsletter. This month’s includes info on Blue Manna (wild blue-green algae), raw organic cacao (chocolate), upcoming special events, and new items available from that website.

ATTENTION: CHOCOLATE LOVERS! Chocolate just doesn’t get any more pure than peeled, raw/organic Cacao Beans themselves. These Cacao Nibs are available from the Rawfood web site, they’re item # 0878. Bon apetite!

* The Crowgrrl’s current reading stack includes:

"Mind of the Raven:Investigations & Adventures With Wolf-Birds" by Bernd Heinrich, "Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard" by Oberon Zell-Ravenheart,

"Norwegian In 10 Minutes A Day’, "Norwegian Verbs & Essentials of Grammar" by Louis Janus, "Eating For Beauty" by David "Avocado" Wolfe,
I am even re-reading The Lost World by Michael Crichton(to write up quiz questions for my son’s home-school literature class - he requested reading this book next).

Plus, added new this week was Brimstone by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

and Marion Zimmer Bradley’s Ancestors of Avalon by Diana L. Paxson.

OTHER NEWS:

* Actor David Keltz brings Edgar Allan Poe back to life in his performances - he is so convincing in the role, one would think he is channeling Poe himself! His riveting performances are seriously awe-inspiring. Catch Keltz performing as Poe at:

* The Maryland Renaissance Festival in Crownsville, MD, opened this weekend, and continues every weekend through October 24.

(The Crowgrrl and family celebrated my birthday with a visit there - it rocks!)

* Hey, Readers, you’ve gotta check out a product called Body Balance by Lifeforce. My family takes Body Balance every day! It’s much better than a daily multi-vitamin, that’s for sure! And another "plus", if we feel down or over-tired, a little more Body Balance does the trick to pick us up.

It’s a liquid, ionic, phytonutrient dietary supplement made from whole foods, and it contains a mix of over 120 vitamins, minerals, and phytronutrients that your body needs on a daily basis to keep healthy.

Why am I telling you about this because an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. I felt I had to share this as one thing most of my readers may not know, in July of 2003, The Crowgrrl was diagnosed with breast cancer. This is something I don't want anyone to have to go through what I did. I’ve refused the "conventional" paths of chemo/radiation/surgery, and have taken a holistic naturopathy approach instead (which I’ll go into in more detail in future Perch editions, or readers can e-mail me). I’m supposed to stay on a specific holistic protocol for two years. Withing 14 months the tumor was supposed to shrunk to half of its original size. Much to our surprise as of December, 2003, the lump (tumor) is gone! I’m fine! I firmly believe the Body Balance helped accelerate the healing.

Also Exclusively for the crowgrrl's readers you can get your own FREE quart of Body Balance. Go to this website http://www.lifeforcefamily.com Then put in this special redeption code 20409879.

Another Lifeforce International product in the online store, The Crowgrrl and family regularly use is Colloidal Silver. Silver is a natural antibacterial element that can be used both topically and/or internally.

* For those of my readers who experience annoying computer (pc/mac/linux) problems (or those of you techies who are annoyed at friends and relatives expecting you to be their personal tech-support 24/7), go to einnovations.juvio.com for around-the-clock help. I’ve personally done so, and my computer’s working like a dream since getting help from there.

* Anyone who hasn’t already done so, check out the Gallery section here on the Crowgrrl’s site. Prints and some originals are still available. So, buy ‘em already!

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